Elbridge, NY — A dozen or so people waved signs and chanted “Justice for Tucker!” as Susan Leach left her court arraignment this afternoon in Elbridge.

Leach, 70, was charged with firing a firearm too close to an occupied dwelling in a May 31 incident that left her neighbor’s pit bull, Tucker, dead.

She declined comment as she hastily walked past the protesters out of court. But a handful of her supporters responded.

“Tucker got his justice!” one man shouted at the crowd.

“If Tucker got justice, one of you would be in jail!” another of Leach’s supporters told the crowd.

Leach appeared briefly before Elbridge Town Court Justice George Bettis. She’s charged with a misdemeanor in the shooting on Stevens Road, south of Cross Lake.

Leach has said she shot Tucker to protect her 10-year-old cat. Tucker was chasing the cat and Leach feared the animal would be killed, she said.

But Tucker’s owner, Shannon Sobus, said she doesn’t believe Leach even owns a pet.

Tucker was shot and killed in Elbridge. Provided Photo 

The two families were in court last year after Leach complained about loud barking, Sobus said. At that time, Leach did not have any animals, Sobus claims.

Some of the protesters were Sobus’s family and friends. They say that Leach was looking for an excuse to shoot the dog. They want Leach charged with aggravated animal cruelty, a felony.

Sobus said she was in the front yard with her 5-year-old daughter, her 10-month-old son and the dog when she went inside briefly to get ready to nurse her son. She heard gunshots and ran outside.

Tucker was bleeding in the middle of the road. Sobus said she held her dog as it died, telling her daughter to stay back.

In court, Leach spoke at length to the justice about hiring a lawyer. She appeared without one today. Bettis noted that Leach could face up to 90 days in jail and be fined if found guilty of the charge.

The case was adjourned a few weeks. Assistant District Attorney John Jensen said his office is still reviewing the case and he declined further comment.

Typically, cases now head into negotiations. But its unclear if the fact Leach does not yet have an attorney will delay the process.